Author
Topic: Return of the Beast Assortments (Read 7689 times)

Yes, I've seen "Owen's" work - very nice stuff. I have my eye on that CW animated scuba clone trooper.

Very cool stuff - but don't sell yourself short Chewie. I've seen your work - you should try tackling something like that....with the right tools and dedication you never know what you might come up with!

Thanks ruiner. I dunno, I just tried my first bit of sculpting last night actually... here it is -

I'm not trying to turn this into a customizing thread or anything, just showing how much improvement I need before going into something that big or detailed.

Owen D. is a great person for making custom stuff for you if you're wondering... his prices are very fair and he's willing to work with you to get ideas on how you want an item made. And his work is outstanding. He's a one of a kind person.

Before I start, I just want to say up front that this is all just my opinion and anyone should feel free to agree or disagree with me.

The problem in rereleasing old beasts actually goes a little further than Jeff's sentiments (which I actually agree with, but for an entirely different reason than the one he gives). The majority of the beast assortment from the POTF2 days, Tauntauns and Wampa excepted, were pretty big shelfwarmers. Even the Dewback, which I still think is one of the best beasts they've done in the modern era, started to sit after a while. The Ronto was boring (and as an SE addition didn't have much appeal), the Jabba pretty much sucked (like the SE CG version), and the Wampa has since been surpassed by the 2004 Ultra Wampa. The Rancor and the Bantha were both great, IMO, but they were shelfwarmers of the ultimate degree (the Rancor more than the Bantha) and I would assume that the Bantha cost Hasbro a hell of a lot to sculpt, what with all the hair.

The Episode I beasts were on a continuum of "good but everywhere," "crappy but hard to locate," and "good but nonexistent." The Kaadu holds up well, sculpt-wise, even if it can't stand up, and the Opee Sea Killer, while severely underscaled, is very nicely sculpted and the action feature isn't bad at all. Jabba was pure garbage if you could find him, and the Eopie was something 99% of the US collectors never saw or obtained. The Faamba was heavily overpriced (Go Go FAO Chapter 11!) and even at the half price I paid for it (35 bucks), it still wasn't worth it.

The Reek was a shelfwarmer on the scale of the Ronto and POTF2 Jabba, and the Acklay was nice (it could have been better) but a lot of people never even saw it because of the Reek.

Anyway, my point is that with the vast majority of the ones I mentioned above, they just have not sold well enough in their initial releases to make me think that the market would go nuts over a straight reissue now. I think that the Eopie should be released in some way again, and the Acklay wouldn't be such a bad choice either. Everything else though would be retail suicide. Again, all just my opinion.

Personally, I'd rather see the Felucia worm thing with a Clone Rider, an Orray with Geonosian, and a Mustafar Flea with Rider right now more than I would care to see a redone Dewback. I'm definitely in the minority who would rather have more prequel figures than OT figures at this point, but all the OT beasts have been done fairly well at this point, and I'm all about new stuff as opposed to old stuff. Your mileage may vary.

I got a rancor for $10 I love him. I need some other beasts though, that is one of the first thing I skimp on when I'm low on money. I have 3 dewbacks one repainted, a nexu, and a Ronto. Here's my dewback if anyone is interested.

I'd love to see that slug, with a clone Rider, it is very different looking and would be cool in a Felucia diorama.

The Falumpaset was released in the Episode I line. Although, it was only available in the UK. But you can get one rather cheap on Ebay if you really want it. I got mine through Ebay for $20, and it was money well spent.

As for a Womp Rat, if they re-release a Tatooine Luke w/ floppy hat and rifle, I can't imagine why Hasbro wouldn't make a Womp Rat an pack in. Or a Scurrier for that matter.

Sith Lord Chaos-- Great idea on the Gardulla. I hadn't thought of that.

Ranat & Chewie-- Scurriers would be a great pack-in (maybe even horned and hornless genders packed with different figures). But womp rats are about 2 meters long, meaning they'd be the size of a regular figure, so not a good pack-in. They'd have to be in a Deluxe or accessory set or something.